Nov. 7 election results bring future into focus for some | Editorial

In the weeks and months leading up to the Nov. 7 election, Northeast Ohio residents, candidates and others with a stake in the ballot results could only look into their proverbial crystal balls and wonder about how the outcome might affect their lives.

With that election now in the history books, those same stakeholders have a clearer idea of what lies ahead for their communities or the government entities (school districts, for example) in which they’re involved.

In the city of Willoughby, for example, residents know who will succeed David Anderson when he wraps up 25 years as mayor at the end of 2017.

Bob Fiala won his bid for mayor with 3,793 votes cast in the race, beating second-place contender Jeffrey H. Black, who captured 2,012 votes and third-place competitor Albert L. Purola, who got 274 votes of the total ballots cast in the race, according to the final, unofficial tally by the Lake County Elections Board.

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Two of the mayoral candidates — Black and Fiala — came into the race as no strangers to city hall, having both served for many years on Willoughby City Council.

Fiala, a 20-year member of council and architect, outlined a plan for Willoughby he’s developed called Envision 4.0. He said he feels that his position as a planner and architect makes him uniquely qualified to carry out the plan.

Purola, a retired attorney with no elected experience, said serving as a mayor required “simple, significant management experience” and the election was “not a political beauty contest.”

We believe that the wide margin of Fiala’s victory showed that most Willoughby residents agreed with the candidate’s self-assessment on his election questionnaire: “...I have the leadership skill, business acumen and temperament to be the mayor of Willoughby.”

John Barbish received 1,844 votes to David Krych’s 1,510 votes, according to unofficial final results.

Term limits prevented current Mayor Bill Margalis from running again.

Barbish said he has a long-term vision for Wickliffe and believes the city is poised for massive change and growth.

However, the challenges that await Barbish and Wickliffe City Council in the new year will be made more difficult by the Nov. 7 failure of a ballot measure to increase the city income to 2.5 percent from 2 percent.

If the tax increase had passed, it would have raised about $2 million annually for city services in Wickliffe, which has been hurt financially in recent years by state revenue reductions. This year, Wickliffe also was stung by news that a major manufacturer, ABB, was leaving the city for a new location in Highland Hills. Losing ABB will cost Wickliffe between $900,000 and $950,000 in income and property taxes.

Among levy issues on the Nov. 7 ballot, the city of Mentor came away better prepared to deal with aging equipment and rising operating costs in its fire department. That’s because voters approved a 1.5-mill replacement fire levy by 8,898 to 2,994, according to unofficial final results.

The levy will yield about $2.15 million annually and cost homeowners $30 a year per $100,000 in property valuation. Property owners currently pay $21.22 a year per $100,000 in home value for the existing five-year renewal levy.

District voters rejected the levy 3,452 to 3,063, according to unofficial final returns from the Geauga County Elections Board. The tax would have yielded more than $2.5 million annually and cost a property owner $136.50 more per year per $100,000 in home value.

The request had mainly to do with a reduction in funds from other sources, including the tangible personal property tax reimbursement phased out by the Ohio Legislature. The other major factor was the Legislature-approved deduction of $6,010 per pupil for each of the 84 Chardon students attending charter schools.

Chardon Schools Superintendent David Hanlon expressed disappointment in the outcome, noting that the impact on district finances will be significant.

With the Nov. 7 election completed, we will now find out if winning candidates keep their promises and if the approval or rejection of levies produce the effects outlined by issue proponents.